The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2259 by Angharad Copyright © 2013 Angharad All Rights Reserved.

Simon switched off the CD player. “I’m really proud of my wife.”

“Why?”

“You dealt with that as well as anyone could have, better than most, including me.”

I felt my chest grow as pride caused it to swell. “Thank you.”

“I have to tell my newest daughter that she did well, too.”

“Please do, she’s really going to need our support as the weeks go by.”

“Is that you or Stephanie speaking?”

“Me, but Stephanie thinks it’s possible, too.”

“You think we’d desert her?”

“No, not at all I’m just warning there might be some strange behaviour.”

“In this household would anyone notice?”

“Simon, that was uncalled for.”

“No it wasn’t, we’re Bohemian, we do what we believe to be okay not because other people do. I’ve stood by you from day one, I’ll stand by any of this family and fight shoulder to shoulder with them.”

“What if you disapprove of the behaviour?”

“Like how?”

“What if she starts shoplifting, or cutting herself?”

“I’ll still stand by her.”

“Thank you, so will I. Glad to know I won’t be on my own.”

“The others will be there too, we fight as a family.”

“I hope so.”

“Why wouldn’t they be?”

“What if she killed herself?”

“She wouldn’t do that, would she?”

“I hope not.”

“That would really make me sad and angry thinking that she couldn’t feel able to come and talk to me or to you–you’re her mother, she should talk to you.”

“Imagine yourself in her position for a bit. She knows I didn’t want her to do it, the transitioning, she knows I certainly didn’t want her to have the surgery–how could she come to me to talk about it?”

“I don’t know, babes. I thought they could all talk to you about anything.”

“I’d like to think so too, but life doesn’t always work out like we’d wish.”

“Very true, so what do we do to try and prevent these things happening?”

“Keep interacting, let her know subtly that we love her as much as a girl as we did a boy. Just help her to try and integrate as a girl.”

“When does she start school?”

“After half term.”

“Couldn’t she start earlier?”

“No, the doctors say she can’t. She has to heal from her operation completely before she can go back to school.”

“How long did it take you?”

“That’s irrelevant, I was older and my conversion was far less traumatic than hers was.”

“Yeah, I s’pose it was. I still can’t understand how someone can have their nadgers taken off.” He shuddered as he spoke.

“I thought I’d explained all that.”

“I’m sure you did, but it still freaks me out.”

“That’s because our valuation of a bit of surplus skin is different.”

“Surplus skin? It’s an essential, it defines what we are.”

Oh boy, I honestly thought we’d got beyond this point.

“It might for some people, but it doesn’t for me, or for Trish, Julie, Sammi and maybe even Danni. For some it’s like possessing a benign a tumour, some even think it’s like a malignant tumour because it secretes poisonous androgens which masculinise a body and cause hair to grow in places we’d prefer it didn’t.”

“Yeah, but that’s a very narrow view of things.”

“I quite agree, we’re a small minority but that’s how most of us feel.”

He shook his head, “Sorry, but I don’t think I’ll ever quite see it in those terms.”

“Fine, I simply hope you’ll support my right to do so, though.”

“Cathy, I’d support your right to do anything–even develop a lust for my body which overwhelmed you at times.”

“Like now, you mean?”

“Did I? Goodness, woman, you must be a mind reader.”

How do I manage to fall into his trap every time? Perhaps because I’m not too worried about doing so and I have the right to say no. I won’t because I hope it’s a way in which he can love me my worshipping my body with his and I do the same for him.

I made him work for it but he got his wicked way. I won’t say I didn’t enjoy it, although I’d probably have been just as happy reading a book before I went to sleep... Despite my unusual route to womanhood, I think we’re a fairly normal couple and that means we have sex occasionally, I know, too much information.

I was a bit sore the next day and sat carefully which made Trish smirk each time she watched me sit down. She’d learned enough not say anything but her smirk was enough to make me feel irritated. I took them to school and then went back to see Sammi and Danni. They were still dilating regularly and would have had some sympathy I’m sure, had they noticed what Trish had.

I was keeping a wary eye on Danni in case she started to show signs of regret but so far there was nothing. I told the older girls and asked Stella and Jacquie to keep an eye open for any change in her behaviour–I didn’t think there was much point in speaking to Tom or Simon as they’d probably not see it anyway.

“God, I hate poking the plastic,” sighed Sammi, “It’s so flipping boring.”

“The joys of womanhood,” I said smiling, “It can get better.”

“Yeah okay, we all know you got it better last night,” said Sammi. “’S alright for some,” she added.

I was aghast, they all knew. Well so what? I’m a married woman–so there.

“Will this ever get better?”asked Danni.

“The dilating?”

“Yeah, it’s uncomfortable and it’s boring.”

I’d heard that’s what some women think of sex.

“I’m afraid it has to be done, sweetheart, or the canal can close up and once lost it’s very difficult to recover.”

“Mine should be alright, remember I’ve got the bit from my bum.”

This was a piece of colon added to the vagina which purportedly makes it self lubricating. Mind you there are loads of natural women who require lubrication before sex. So one or two more with the same problem isn’t adding to it very much.

“I suspect it could still shrink, young lady so you keep doing it.”

“But it’s so boring.”

“But necessary if you want to be able to have penetrative sex when you’re older.”

“You mean if I want to screw?”

“I believe that’s one way of describing it.”

“What if I don’t?”

I nearly said, ‘You’d be missing out on something beautiful.’ Instead I said, “I don’t think you should hold such dogmatic views, especially at your age.”

“Oh get with it, Mummy, sometimes you’re so old fashioned.”

“If that means holding decency, trustworthiness and compassion then colour me old fashioned.”

“That isn’t what I meant, and you knew it.”

“You should have spoken more clearly if that embarrasses you. How will you cope with it yourself?”

“I think I’ll become a nun,” she said with no sense of irony or even self consciousness.

I went on with organising lunch and the conversation drifted away to nothing as watching what Bramble was doing with a feather was far more interesting.